Teria Yarhere, popularly called Mtrill, knew he had a knack for putting words together to form rhymes long before he knew he could rap. So when he embarked on a mission of writing lyrics for his elder brother, he did not know that he was laying a foundation for a career that would take him far.

Although he came into the music industry not long ago, the young man is rising, collaborating with major players in the industry, including 2shots, Timaya and Ruggedman, and dishing out vibes that have been rocking TV stations.

Spectacles ran into him during the week and he spoke on his life and gradual but steady rise to stardom.

 Born in 1979 in Lagos, Mtrill joined the hip-hop movement when he was in Federal Government College, Odogbolu, Ogun State. Although he knew how to rap, he was never at the forefront. Instead, he began exerting his energy on organising hip hop shows.

“Music has always been a part of me. I never used to be at the forefront. It started with my brother always telling me to write out lyrics of songs for him from a cassette. I would listen to the cassette and I would write it down on paper for him. That was how music became a part of me.”

He continued with music, though not seriously, until he entered the University of Port Harcourt and met some guys who were really into entertainment. That was when the urge to go into music fully siezed him.

“They were doing so much with their act. I was like if they could do it, I could as well. I was inspired and I had to start writing my own songs and started performing,” he said.

However, Mtrill said his plan was just to put out one song for posterity. “I wanted to do a song that I could play for my kids and tell them their father dabbled into music somehow.”

That was how he came up with Langua, the album that changed his focus and vision.

“The recording was very shabby. But my elder brother played it for his friend, IK of Rhythm FM. He told me the track was very good compared to what he played on radio and he advised me to give music a shot. That was how I started.”Â

But he said he couldn’t go into music on full time basis because he had to get through with his studies first. “I was studying Geology. I wanted to be through with my education before I faced music. I didn’t want the two to clash.”

As such, he finished school and Mtrill got his first record deal with Excel before he joined Grafton Records where he is doing well.

He said, “I have always wanted to be one of the world’s best, and since my deal with Grafton included a UK release, I felt it was good for me. Also, I know that Grafton Records has always being true to their words. When they say something, they do it, so I signed with them.”

But why didn’t he pursue a career in Geology? To that, Mtrill said, “If I die tomorrow, I will be fulfilled. Why should I do what I don’t like for the sake of other people who are doing what they like? You can make money from anything. You must not be a geologist to make money. If you are born a singer, then there is nothing you can do about it.”

He has so much passion for his career that he says nothing can take him out of it. “Even if an oil company offers me a job, I am not taking it. Music is my passion. There are a lot of young people who see me as their idol. If I leave music, then their hope of becoming like me is dashed. We need to stop being selfish. It is not always about money, but about the passion you have for something.”

Because he is concentrating on his music, Mtrill says he has not been able to get a girlfriend.

He said, “I don’t have a girlfriend. I even did a song about that, which I titled Where you Dey. In any case, I am not looking for a girlfriend. I don’t want to go into any relationship that does not have focus any longer. If I want to have a girlfriend, I should be looking at marriage as well. What is the use of dating a girl for two or three years and moving over to another girl? I have done my part of that and I am not doing it any longer.”

Mtrill confessed he had broken a lot of ladies’ hearts and his heart has being broken as well. “It is a 50-50 thing. They break my heart and I break theirs as well.

“I have to face my music now. I have a five-year plan. I need to take care of the woman; that is why I have to face my career now. But that does not mean I would not be looking out for prospective wife.”